Prior to this invention, product recovery in a photochemical mercury enrichment process has typically and most conveniently been accomplished by the removal of the photochemical reactor and the conduction of an electrolytic recovery process to remove the Hg.sub.2 Cl.sub.2 product from the reactor walls. Complete recovery of the enriched mercury would take place in a separate electrolytic tank with the reactor removed from the process. Unfortunately, this method requires a substantial amount of set-up time to replace reactors and re-initiate the starting sequence of the system.
Webster et al. in J. Phys. Chem., 85, 1302 (1981), describe yet another thermal method for the removal of the product from the reactor wall in a photochemical mercury enrichment reactor. There the authors state that a 450.degree. C. temperature is needed to sublime the Hg.sub.2 Cl.sub.2 from the reactor wall to a cool collecting plate. In addition to the high temperature, this method also requires vacuum components which can sustain such high temperatures. Further, for large scale systems this method would require a large expenditure of energy to reach the necessary high temperature.